Our elementary school database provides rankings of these 388 schools, breaking them into four distinct clusters - gold medal winners for those achieving 70 percent or better, silver medals for those achieving 65 percent and above and bronze medals for those ranking 60 percent and better.

As alternative to our rankings, which mix academics and campus environment factors - such as diversity, expulsions, fitness tests and more - our database also provides a straight academic ranking from GreatSchools.net, a Register education partner.

Our methodology: In ranking schools, we assess a series of hand-selected academic and school environment categories from the state Department of Education database. We then give certain categories specific weight to ensure the final picture provides the most accurate depiction of campus quality. See the measures we chose and how we stressed their importance. Also see notes on where state data might be lacking.

GreatSchools: The Orange County Register partners with GreatSchools.net, a nonprofit Web site that provides a forum for parent comments about specific campuses. Click on the header to link to our GreatSchools search tool, a doorway to additional numbers and data about your neighborhood school.

The Register's effort to measure school success began with its first-ever public high school rankings in May 2008 and our review of private high schools in November 2008.

Public excellence: Our May 2008 report on the county's top public high schools provided more than two dozen measures for 63 comprehensive high schools, from academics to diversity, from physical fitness to California Interscholastic Federation sports competition.

Private power: Our November 2008 report on the county's private high schools showcased some of the best known and respected schools in the region, and matched their collective performance to Orange County's top public high schools.

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